Dogwash

I was listening to the amiable Mrs Elizabeth Heiney's genteel conversation programme, Midweek, on the steam wireless just now. Well, a couple of hours ago, but that's close enough. One of her guests was the Nigerian musician Muyiwa Olarewaju. Apparently he's fairly upper crust in Nigeria and his full name is about a yard and a half long, and he rattled it off for our benefit at Libby's request. You don't frighten me with your long names, matey, I've worked with Tamils. So there.

Anyway, Muyiwa was born in Nigeria and sent to England as a child to "get a decent education", living in London with a series of distant relatives. A fairly common practice; and at least he did better out of it than the unfortunate Victoria Climbié and Damilola Taylor.

But it's never occurred to me before to wonder specifically, who is actually paying for all of this? I suppose he could have been sent to a fee-paying independent school fully funded by his parents back in the old country, but I can't say I'm entirely sanguine about that assumption. There are no checks on eligibility for free state education.

So I guess we're not only providing a free world health service but a free world education service as well. No worries, just get to the UK and they'll look after you.

Hmm. To quote that excellent, if noisy, popular American songster Mr M Loaf, "Life is a lemon and I want my money back".



Addendum

What is it with bloody Google? After I posted, the Blogger response screen offered me this:


The other day they were trying to find me a nice Muslima to marry. That bastard Hundal's behind this, I tell you. Nurse, quick, the orange pills!